City of Jasper_____________________________________
Mary L. McNary Telephone 417-394-2532
City Clerk Fax 417-394-3088
121 E. Grand Email: jctyhall@keinet.net
P. O. Box 247
Jasper, MO 64755
Draft
Minutes—January 20, 2010
Roll Call
The Jasper City Council met in regular and closed sessions for the month of January on Wednesday, January 20, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. at City Hall. Council members present included Frank Shumard, Russell Selvey, Mike Smith and Josh Ghumm. Mayor Paul Nelson presided over the meeting.
Russell Selvey moved and Josh Ghumm seconded the motion to amend the Agenda to allow Mr. Rich Nordell with Jasper County Emergency Services to address the Council at this point in the meeting. The vote was 4-0 in favor.
Jasper County Emergency Services
Mr. Nordell addressed the Council regarding communications and some of the actions to be taken in the near future to improve service to areas that have been experiencing problems with radio communications. He has commissioned a site survey for repeaters. Actions being planned include:
1. Installing more repeaters in the “receive only” mode.
2. Replacing the existing antenna on the water tower for Fire East.
3. Moving the antenna for Law North to the water tower.
Citizen Participation
There were a number of citizens present, and Mayor Nelson invited citizen participation. Gene Etter approached the Council regarding a nuisance abatement notice he had received. Gene explained his plans for addressing the issues specified in his notice. He agreed to clean up the weeds, remove the junk vehicles and repair his shed. He explained that he might need as much as a year’s time to finish work on the shed. Consensus of the Council was to approve his plan as outlined, and the Council will monitor his progress.
Monthly Reports
The minutes of the December 16, 2009 regular and closed sessions were approved on a motion by Russell Selvey, seconded by Mike Smith. The vote was 4-0 in favor. The Treasurer’s report for the month of December was approved as presented on a motion by Russell Selvey, seconded by Mike Smith. The vote was 4-0 in favor. The Collector’s report for the month of December was approved as presented on a motion by Frank Shumard with a second by Josh Ghumm. The vote was 4-0 in favor. The obligations for the month were approved for payment on a motion by Frank Shumard, seconded by Josh Ghumm. The vote was 4-0 in favor.
Departmental Reports
Fire
Fire Chief J.R. Good shared with the Council that Jasper Fire and Rescue had responded to 234 calls in calendar year 2009. The number of actual fires was down from the year before.
J. R. reported that a gear cable had broken on Rescue 911 and he had the service truck from Diamond International come up to take care of it. The invoice for the repair had not arrived at meeting time, but the unit was already back in service. The cable had broken while this unit was parked in front of two other fire vehicles in the Fire Barn, and had to be towed out of the way to allow the other vehicles to remain in service.
J. R. shared that he is working to achieve a better ISO rating for the City. The current rating is an 8, and he would like to be at 5 or 6. A number of factors have to be considered in determining the rating.
J. R. shared with the Council that on occasion the Volunteer Fire Department receives donations which the donor designates for a specific purpose. He explained that at these times it would seem most appropriate to deposit the funds to a Jasper Fire and Rescue account and observe the wishes of the donor. J. R. explained that he would prefer that this account fall under the oversight of the City, and that two signatures be required on all checks written from the account. Russell Selvey moved and Mike Smith seconded the motion to approve a checking account under the oversight of the City, to be named the Jasper Fire and Rescue account. The vote was 4-0 in favor. Initial signatures on this account will include Fire Chief J.R. Good, Mayor Paul M. Nelson, and City Clerk Mary McNary.
Water and Streets
Rick Good, Water and Street Superintendent reported that he had reviewed a copy of the International Plumbing Code, and found that there was very little included in the code that would be desirable for the City of Jasper to adopt. There are some sections that would be appropriate to include in City ordinances, however current ordinances could be amended to include these sections without adopting the entire code. Discussion followed. Council instructed Clerk to review the ordinances and prepare an amendment to include specifications on grease traps for cooking oil.
Rick shared that the flow meter (which has a digital read-out) was out of service at the lagoon lift station, and a code (and a computer and software) is required to fix it. The original service manuals for some of the lagoon components are no longer available. The codes and software were not included in the original files. Rick reviewed with the Council a proposed Lift Station Maintenance Contract from Enviro-Line Co., Inc. The maintenance contract would include two maintenance visits per year, to be billed at $600.00 after each visit, with a total contract of $1200.00 per year. Parts will be billed separately and any non-routine labor would be billed at an hourly rate. Russell Selvey moved and Josh Ghumm seconded the motion to accept the proposed maintenance contract by Enviro-Line, as specified. The vote was 4-0 in favor.
Rick shared that a number of streets had been damaged by truck traffic. The recent cold weather had been tough on some of the streets, and trucks traveling through residential areas are really tearing up the surfaces of these streets.
Jim McCorkle asked to address the Council while discussing Water and Streets. Jim explained that there is a large manhole on Kerrick St. at the Jasper Homes, and he needed clarification as to whether this was a City manhole, or if it belonged to the Homes. Rick shared that he believed it belonged to the Homes. Neither the Homes nor the City have drawings including this detail at that location. Mayor Nelson advised that he would check further into this and get back with Mr. McCorkle.
Police
Chief of Police Jeffrey Prater introduced Officer Jason Mosher and Officer Dustin McDaniel. Chief Prater reviewed with the Council the departmental statistics for the month of December.
Mayor Nelson asked the Police Department to check and be sure that the “Truck Route” signs are all in place, and asked them to advise truckers to stay on the truck routes.
Accounting and City Hall
One request for sewer discount was received. Frank Shumard moved and Russell Selvey seconded the motion to approve a sewer discount as requested by Tina Williams due to a broken water pipe. The vote was 4-0 in favor.
City Clerk Mary McNary reviewed with the Council the 2009 Budget, with revenue and expenses through December 31, 2009.
Mary shared that the annual City Dog Shot Clinic had been scheduled for May 15 2010. Dates for the City wide Garage Sale and the annual Large Item Pick up will be set as soon as dates are available from neighboring towns, in an effort to avoid scheduling conflicts.
Audit bids were solicited in December for review at the regular meeting on January 20, 2010. Two responses were received, one from Schmidt and Associates and one from Mense, Churchwell and Mense. Schmidt and Associates thanked the City for the opportunity, to bid but declined to bid at this time. Josh Ghumm moved and Mike Smith seconded the motion to accept the bid of Mense, Churchwell, and Mense. The vote was 4-0 in favor.
Brief discussion was held regarding the use of the City ball fields by the school and ball leagues. Council members were given copies of rules from previous years to review and consider. Mike Smith volunteered to work on this.
Mary shared with the Council that it had recently been brought to her attention that the City owns a small parcel outside the bounds of the City; this parcel is a small cemetery purchased by the City in 1894, and needs to be maintained. The parcel is surrounded by farm ground belonging to Mac Kincaid. Discussion followed. This matter will be checked into further.
Old Business
Administrative Hearing Commission
City is awaiting receipt of transcript of hearing.
Pending Property Purchase
Mayor and Council are awaiting written confirmation of MoDOT’s intentions.
Nuisance Abatement
A number of additional letters have been sent out, and residents continue to work on this.
New Business
Business License Requests
None.
Planning and Zoning Requests
None.
Closed Session
Mike Smith moved and Josh Ghumm seconded the motion to go into Closed Session to discuss the leasing, purchase, or sale of real estate by a public governmental body, pursuant to Chapter 610 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri with a closed record and a closed vote within that closed meeting. The vote was 4-0 in favor. Council went into Closed Session at 10:00 p.m.
Discussion was conducted (pending property purchase). During Closed Session there were no votes cast.
Russell Selvey moved and Josh Ghumm seconded the motion to return to regular session. The vote was 4-0 in favor. Council returned to regular session at 10:47 p.m.
Josh Ghumm moved and Mike Smith seconded the motion to authorize the Mayor to submit a bid on property as discussed. The vote was 4-0 in favor.
Russell Selvey moved and Frank Shumard seconded the motion to adjourn. The vote was 4-0 in favor. Meeting adjourned at 10:50 p.m.
Mary L. McNary Paul M. Nelson
City Clerk Mayor